Category: DEFENSE

keywords: lëtzebuerger arméi, army, defense, take an oath, luxembourg. On Tuesday 11 September 2018 with the presence of the Chief of Staff of the army General Alain Duschene that a non-commissioned officer of the Luxembourg Army took an oath. The non-commissioned officer attended the following trainings from February 2017 to March 2018: – “JZ9207 / JZ9203, Training Team & Long Section” at the Royal School of NCOs at the Saffraanberg Campus in Sint-Truiden, Belgium. – “GT2700 LOO CIS – 2017 – 9 – CCSpDeptCIS” at the Communication and Information System…

keywords: defense, helicopters Airbus H145M, defense plan 2025, luxembourg army, luxembourg police. Luxembourg issued a firm order of two H145M helicopters from the European aircraft manufacturer Airbus as announces today friday Defense Minister Etienne Schneider, these two new aircrafts will be an integral part of the new air component developed by the Luxembourg army. Assigned to the defense of the country and the airborne surveillance, the two helicopters will also be available to be used for the benefit of other actors, in particular Police Luxembourg. In their exploitation, these two helicopters…

keywords: a400m luxembourg, logistics support, air component of the luxembourg army. The maintenance and operatipn budget of the A400M Atlas Luxembourg was voted this afternoon. A budget of 420 million euros for a 35-year operational period was approved by the MPs by a large majority (55 yes (CSV, LSAP, DP, déi gréng), 2 no (dei Lénk), 3 abstentions (ADR)). Postponed several times due to production problems of its manufacturer Airbus Military, the Defense branch of the European aircraft manufacturer, the arrival of the Luxembourg A400m in Findel is now scheduled…

keywords: lëtzebuerger arméi, voluntary military service, solemn promise, luxembourg. Fifty-four volunteer soldiers were sworn in on Friday 20 April 2018 at Saint Michel Square in Mersch in the presence of the Secretary of State for Defense, Francine Closener. This ceremony marks for the volunteers the completion of the four-month basic training. This phase aims to prepare the volunteer soldiers for their 36-month military training, which can then be extended. Of a total of 78 recruits, 54 successfully completed basic training, a 69% success rate. Participation in exciting and rewarding missions…

keywords: boeing awacs luxembourg, nato, conflict in syria, turkey. A NATO Boeing AWACS E3 Sentry flew over southern Turkey (NATO member) near the Syrian border on Wednesday 11 April. This overview comes in the context of tensions between the United States, Russia and Syria on the possible chemical attack (and likely in the opinion of the international community) of the Syrian army on part of the country’s population . An aircraft flying at an altitude of 30,000 feet (9,000 meters) can oversee an area of ​​more than 300,000 square kilometers,…

keywords: a400m airbus military, lëtzebuerger arméi, nato, belgium, luxembourg. The arrival of the Luxembourg A400M on the Findel runaway is once again postponed to be scheduled for early 2020. This was stated by the Minister of Defense Etienne Schneider Friday in response to a question by Fernand Kartheiser, ADR MP. The delivery of the A400M by Airbus Military, the defense branch of the European aircraft manufacturer, was previously planned for 2019. “Delivery postponed until early 2020, the A400M price remains unchanged” (Etienne Schneider, March 08, 2018) Intended for strategic and tactical…

keywords: military center, army, härebierg, diekirch, luxembourg. It is official since Wednesday, the Diekirch Military Center will know an unprecedented total investment of 137 million euros to renovate, modernise and expand the Barracks, pillar of the Luxembourg Army. EUR 137 million for the modernisation and extension of the Härebierg military barracks Built mainly in the 1950s, the Grand-Duc Jean barracks at Härebierg in Diekirch need to be renovated and modernised to better meet the ever-increasing missions of the Luxembourg Army, particularly within NATO. Over the last four years, investments of…

keywords: govsat-1 satellite, secure telecommunications, space strategy, luxembourg. It is done. Luxembourg’s GovSat 1 satellite for highly secure communications to governments and armies is in orbit. The news confirmed by the actors of this success that are SpaceX the US company responsible for the launch and the Luxembourgish SES world leader in satellite construction and 50% partner in GovSat, a rain of congratulations fell on the networks first and foremost those of Prime Minister Xavier Bettel and Minister of Defense Etienne Schneider. GovSat is strengthening the position of Luxembourg as…

keywords: lëtzebuerger arméi, observation satellite, NATO objectives, earth observation, defense, luxembourg. It’s official since today, the Luxembourg government will initiate a bill to allow the Luxembourg state to acquire, launch and operate a satellite and its ground segment for Earth observation allowing the government to satisfy its defense needs and obligations. As we know since last year, Luxembourg is implementing an ambitious defense strategy by 2025. Although the country is small and can not compete with its neighbours or other members of the Atlantic Alliance, it nonetheless wishes to respect…

keywords: lëtzebuerger arméi, volunteer service to the army, voluntary military service, solemn promise, luxembourg. Forty-three new recruits took the oath on the 12 January at the Diekirch Military Center in the presence of Defense Minister Etienne Schneider and the new Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces General Alain Duschène. This ceremony marks for volunteers the completion of the four-month basic training. This phase aims to prepare the volunteer soldiers for their 36-month military training, which can then be extended. Of a total of 65 recruits, 43 have successfully completed…

keywords: lëtzebuerger améi, d’arméi, otan, enhanced forward presence, lithuania, luxembourg. As a result of repeated attacks by Russia on Ukraine and the annexation of Crimea, a NATO mission is to strengthen the protection of the most eastern members of the Alliance, Poland and the countries Baltic. Luxembourg as a member of NATO takes its part and actively participates in the “Enhanced Forward Presence” (eFP) mission in Lithuania, which represents a significant budgetary effort given the size of the country but shows the government commitment in its ambitious policy of supporting…

keywords: security jobs luxembourg, recruitment, lëtzebuerger arméi, police lëtzebuerg, pompjeeën. Long regarded as a small sleepy country, the Grand Duchy wakes up in recent years under the current government impulse through significant increases in budgets allocated to Public Security. Thus major campaigns for the modernization of equipment and rejuvenation of the staff are launched for the Army, the Police, the Fire/Rescue services. These three entities were present at the 2017 Student Fair at LuxExpo and their booths were continuously packed, highlighting the new interest of the youngest for military, police…

keywords: chief of staff, army, arméi, defense, luxembourg. On Friday, 29 September 2017, the ceremony appointing the new Chief of Staff of the Luxembourg Armed Forces took place between General Romain Mancinelli (retiring) and General Alain Duschène, in the presence of the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defense, Étienne Schneider, and the Secretary for Defense, Francine Closener. General Alain Duschène joined the Army as a volunteer-soldier in 1978 and climbed all levels. He then studied at the Royal Military Academy in Brussels and received a BA in Social and Military…

keywords: russia, icbm missile, nato, enhanced advanced presence, north korea. Russia launchedy esterday an ICBM-type missile from a launch base in Siberia to Russia-friendly Kazakhstan. The drill proved to be a success and to have fully reached its target. This missile fire occurs in the context of a double tension. On the one hand the increased presence of NATO troops in Poland and the Baltic countries after the annexation of the Crimea and the strong support of Russia to the Ukrainian separatists. This spectacular deployment of NATO in order to…

keywords: cybersecurity, cases.lu, securitymadein.lu, best practices, risk prevention, luxembourg. While cyber attacks on Luxembourg are constantly increasing and Europol confirms the same trend at European level, cybersecurity is a major issue. Although no study to date has quantified losses to the Luxembourg economy as a result of cybercrime and companies are reluctant to report on financial losses related to cyber attacks, the amounts are significant, as an example the latest wave of ransomware Wannacry has in particular affected BNP Paribas Real Estate in Luxembourg. The Grand Duchy has been focusing…

keywords: voluntary service to the army, voluntary military service, solemn promise, luxembourg. Thirty new recruits of the Luxembourg Army took an oath last Friday in the presence of Secretary of Defense Francine Closener. This symbolic ceremony marks the end of the 4 months of basic training of new volunteers serving with the Army, who have committed themselves to a 36-month period (which may be extended). Out of a promotion of 56 volunteers, only 30 recruits or just over half will be allowed to continue their commitment. This year, seven volunteer…

keywords: “anniversaries” concert, army luxembourg, d’arméi, military music. As part of this year’s celebration of the 50th anniversary of volunteer military service and the 175th anniversary of military music, a concert will be organised at the Philharmonie on October 20th. The General Staff of the Army today informs that the general public is invited to attend this concert which will be given by the Grand-Ducal Military Music accompanied in part by the former musical group AWACS, army volunteer orchestra founded in 1982. The military music will accompany the screening of…

keywords: solemn changing of the guard, grand-ducal palace, luxembourg. This Saturday 09 September 2017 will take place the solemn changing of the Guard in front of the Grand-Ducal Palace in Luxembourg at 16:00. After the changing of July 08, it is the last time for this year 2017 that the public will be able to attend this event expected by inhabitants and tourists. The solemn changing of the Guard is experiencing a growing success from year to year, the Luxembourg Army demonstrating all its mastery and makes dream all the…

keywords: belgian national day, military parade, d’arméi, belgium. The 21st of July marks the Belgian National Day and with it its military parade in the heart of Brussels on the Place des Palais. A military and civilian parade on the “proud to serve” theme this year 2017. An air parade opened by the Red Devils will precede the parade of the equipments and men. A detachment of the Luxembourg army with men and equipments will also be present, as well as French, German and Dutch detachments. A promising parade that…

keywords: enhanced forward presence, nato, lithuania, arméi, luxembourg. The Lithuanian Ministry of Defense confirms the arrival of Luxembourg soldiers on its soil by the port of Klaipėda on 17 July late night. These soldiers intervene as part of the “Enhanced Forward Presence” (eFP), a NATO mission to ensure the security of the Eastern European Alliance member countries ( The Baltic States and Poland) with regard to the potential risks posed by Russia following the annexation of the Crimea and support for the pro-Russian separatist militias in eastern Ukraine. This reinforcement…

keywords: defense 2025 roadmap, francine closener, d’arméi, luxembourg. After the great success of the Open Door at Diekirch Military Center last Sunday, Defense Secretary Francine Closener presented today the “Guidelines of the Luxembourg Defense to 2025 and beyond”. The increase of the military budget, the recruitment strategy, the purchase of monitoring drones, but that’s not all. Reminding the efforts made since 2014 to increase the share of the military budget in GDP and the future efforts to be made in the new NATO missions, the following guidelines are announced: Confirmation…

keywords: solemn changing of the guard, grand-ducal palace, luxembourg. The coming weekend is full of military events. As the Army celebrates the 50th anniversary of the voluntary military service and opens the doors of the Diekirch Military Center to visitors on Sunday 09 July, it will be the capital city that the day before will welcome the solemn changing of the Guard in front of the Grand-Ducal Palace Saturday 08 July at 4.00 pm. An event awaited by the locals and tourists, the changing of the Guard is experiencing a…

keywords: military center door open, diekirch, d’arméi, luxembourg. As the Army celebrates 50 years of voluntary military service in Luxembourg, the Diekirch Military Center opens its doors to the public on Sunday, July 09, 2017 from 10 am to 6 pm. Throughout the day materials will be exhibited and demonstrations will be carried out according to the planing below. For safety reasons it is not advisable to come with a backpack and access by car to the “Härebierg” will be allowed only for people with reduced mobility. Demonstration program: 11.00-11.30…

keywords: voluntary military service, army, luxembourg. While Luxembourg Army is celebrating 50 years of voluntary military service this year, the government is trying to make the military career more attractive. For a long time poorly considered, the military career is increasingly considered by young people, rejuvenation of staff is under way. While the law of 28 June 1967 put an end to compulsory military service by introducing voluntary service, since that date more than 8,350 volunteer soldiers have joined the Army. In 1987, voluntary military service was opened to women….

keywords: defense, nato, tanker-transport aircrafts, brussels, luxembourg. At the initiative of Luxembourg and the Netherlands a memorandum of understanding for a European multinational fleet of Airbus tanker-transport aircrafts was signed in July 2016, ordering two Airbus A330 Multi-Role Tanker Transport aircrafts, which should be delivered in 2020. On Thursday, June 29, 2017, Germany and Norway join the initiative, and at the same time the fleet goes from two to seven ordered aircrafts. The units will be delivered from 2020 onwards. Four will be stationed at Eindhoven airbase (the Netherlands), the…

keywords: national day luxembourg, military parade, awacs, nato, luxembourg. The military parade of the National Day last Friday impressed by its quality on the one hand and by the overflight by 2 times of an AWACS aircraft. And after the great success of this day, many have wondered how such a small country can have such a aircraft with the lion’s head. As soon as NATO’s first Boeing E-3A AWACS became operational in 1982, it was decided to register them in Luxembourg, since this country does not have any air…

keywords: national day luxembourg, military parade, c-130, awacs. The Government is today communicating the details of the planning of the festivities on 22 and 23 June. At the time of the military parade avenue de la Liberté starting at 11:30 am and presided by HH Grand Duke Henri, the avenue will be overflown by a Lockheed Hercules C-130 piloted by a Luxembourger and an Awacs E-3A type, flying with the Luxembourg flag, closing the parade at around 1:00 pm. The Army Festival “Arméifest um Rousegäertchen” will start at 1:00 pm…

keywords: lockheed martin, f-35, defense, president trump. According to insistent rumors Lockheed Martin (LMT) is about to sign the firm order of 440 F-35 type aircraft destined for 11 different countries including the United States to deliver until 2020. The aircraft is already a commercial success. The F-35 is the flagship of the US defense industry and to date only 2 countries have it, the United States and Israel. This aircraft is, in the opinion of the experts, without any competitor at present, and thus gives a considerable advance to…

keywords: national day luxembourg, arméifest um rousegäertchen, luxembourg. On Wednesday, the Army General Staff, on the occasion of the 50th Anniversary of Volunteering with the Army and in the framework of the 175th Anniversary of Military Music, communicates on the public invite by the Luxembourg Army to attend the “Arméifest um Rousegäertchen”. Organized at the Place des Martyrs in Luxembourg-Ville, this popular festival celebrates the anniversary of these two milestones in the history of the Luxembourg Army will take place at the end of the military parade that takes place…

keywords: nato, european union, europe of defense, defense budget, luxembourg. The European Commission announced on Wednesday (07 June) the launch of a fund for the defense of the countries of the Union. This fund is expected to provide 500 million euros of money from the European Union to help buy and develop high-tech military projects such as drones or robotics. This amount is expected to double from 2020 to reach the billion euros annually. This decision comes as President Trump continues to press his NATO allies to increase their military…

keywords: north korea, japan, missile, president trump. The Japanese authorities confirm this morning the launch of a North Korean short-range ballistic missile that has grounded 300 km off the coast of Japan. This launch is the 3rd in 3 weeks. The Japan Prime Minister promises a “concrete action” following this launch. This is not the first missile launch in direction of Japan, it is clearly targeted by North Korea. While appeals to resolve the crisis peacefully do not seem to be crowned with success the Japanese Prime Minister is increasing the tone…

keywords: otan, defense, terrorism, luxembourg. Since taking office on January 20, President Trump has continued to put pressure on his NATO allies. German Chancellor Merkel faced it when going to Washington. The objective is for the members of the Organization to spend at least 2% of their GDP in military expenditure in order to contribute actively to NATO missions (defense and anti-terrorism), the United States considering they pay the defense of their allies without return from them. The United States has also voted a defense budget for next year up…

keywords: cyber attack, cyber security, ransomware, wannacry, luxembourg. This Saturday, May 13 at 6 pm the Luxembourg Government communicates on the dangers of the “WannaCry” ransomware worldwide cyber attack. The Government explains that the virus is spread by the mailbox and that it uses a vulnerability of the Windows operating system. It is therefore recommended not to open doubtful e-mails. A Windows security update (MS17-010) is available and must be installed. For more than 24 hours now the world is facing what Europol calls ransomware “unprecedented attack”. Large companies and…

keywords: a400m, airbus military, nato, defense, luxembourg. With an increasing military budget, Luxembourg army wants to take on a new dimension. By 2020, the government plans to raise the military budget from 0.4% of GDP to 0.6% of GDP, a 50% increase. This increased budget allows the large recruitment of soldiers and the purchase of equipment such as drones, helicopters and transport aircraft. As for the transport aircraft, it is an Airbus Military A400m purchased jointly with other NATO allies (France, Germany, Belgium, Spain, Turkey). According to Reuters, Airbus Military may need…

keywords: cyber attack, ddos, cyber-security, press, france. After the massive attacks on the Luxembourg State servers, several French press websites such as Le Monde, Le Figaro, Sud Ouest, 20 Minutes, L’Obs were unavailable for about an hour on Wednesday afternoon. The cause is an IT attack, not to these titles directly, but to their IT provider. The situation was back to normal at 17:40. Cedexis company is the provider (a sort of web control tower that routes traffic based on network overload) that suffered a large DDOS attack. The main French media sites are…

keywords: security, police, customs, firemen, army, ettelbruck, luxembourg. Today, the Security Profession Day in Ettelbrück is a great success. Even if the weather is not that good, it is in number that the onlookers are gathered in front of the materials and men. Since 10:00 this morning the pedestrian center of Ettelbrück is taken by the Public Security forces which expose material and men. In number are the representatives of the Luxembourg Army with heavy material and young soldiers who are available for questions. A camouflage workshop brings out the youngest faces…

keywords: army, customs, police, firefighters, recruitment, ettelbrück, luxembourg. Ettelbrück city organizes a special day named “Your security – Our job”, a presentation day of the Public Security professions this Saturday, April 22, 2017. In the heart of the pedestrian center, men and equipment will be presented from 10:00 to 18:00. Whether you are planning a career in the Police, Army, Customs, Firefighters, or to make the little ones dream, this day is not to be missed. Share this page with:

keywords: defense, security price, united states, daesh. In our series on the price of defense, today what is the price of the largest non-nuclear bomb in the US military. The US fired yesterday Thursday this bomb on the Islamic State/Daesh in Afghanistan to destroy a set of underground tunnels and caves in which terrorists hide. But immediately a controversy over the price of this weapon broke out, the wildest figures circulating on social networks. According to official sources (Pentagon) one of these bombs costs $16 million, and 20 bombs of this type…

keywords: cyberattacks, ddos, fernand kartheiser, xavier bettel, luxembourg. MP Fernand Kartheiser (ADR) sent a parliamentary question on 7 April requesting details of DDOS (Distributed Denial of Service) attacks that government servers and servers in some private companies in the Grand Duchy suffered recently. Among the private companies whose servers were attacked, the name of Paul Würth appeared in the press but the firm didn’t confirm. In a session to the Parliament few weeks ago, Prime Minister Bettel said that the heart of the State servers have not been reached, that the security…

Photo AFP. keywords: north korea, missiles, united states, international affairs North Korea fired a ballistic missile today again, just few hours after President Trump talked again about the “North Korea problem” for its neighbors, South Korea first and all the western countries allies second, Japan, Philippines in the front. North Korea is looking for testing what could be nuclear missiles, able to target Japan or even the United States. Today’s launch could be interpreted as a provocation from North Korea after President Trump asked North Korea best ally China to…

keywords: army, military, defense, jobs, luxembourg. The Luxembourg military recruits permanently. With a budget expected to rise from 0.4% of GDP to 0.6% of GDP by 2020, a 50% increase in 4 years time, and a questioning on the future of NATO, procurement equipment decisions (drones) have already been taken. And an increase in staff numbers is also planned. But attention, increasing numbers does not mean lower requirements. Even though it is composed of only a thousand men today, this military now plays an important role in supporting the abroad operations, and its role…

Photo AFP. keywords: spacex, falcon, ses astra, satellites, luxembourg. The launch of a recycled rocket is a first. And for this first, Luxembourg is concerned. Indeed, the Falcon 9 rocket flew this Thursday at 18:27 (local time) from the American base of Cape Canaveral in Florida with on board the communications satellite SES 10. The orbiting of the satellite is successful. Space X has the ambition to recycle the launcher elements by retrieving them and reusing them for subsequent launches. Its President Elon Musk plans to reuse the launchers 10 to 20…

keywords: north korea, international affairs, tension, missile, united states. A new missile launch test today from North Korea. But according to the American Military and South Koreas’s Defense Ministry the launch failed and the missile exploded just after launch. North Korea authorities deny the missile explosion. This launch comes as tension runs high between North-Korea and occidental countries, South Korea first but Japan and the United States too. Ten days ago Japan decided to dispatch its largest warship across South China Sea and last week the US House Intelligence Committee Chairman stated that…

keywords: press conference, president trump, chancellor merkel, otan, luxembourg, europe. At the joint press conference on Friday afternoon with Chancellor Merkel, President Trump once again put pressure on the NATO allies. After confirming the strong commitment of the United States in NATO, he declared that the nations must pay a “fair price” to benefit from the protection of NATO, with Germany in mind, repeating its commitment of electoral campaign to make pay more to the nations to benefit from this protection mainly financed by the United States and without…

keywords: defense, luxembourg, drone, surveillance, airspace. The Secretary of State for Defense said on Tuesday during the session in the Chamber of Deputies concerning the military that the government plans to buy drones and helicopters in order to monitor the national airspace. These drones and helicopters will not be armed and will only be assigned to monitoring tasks. While the decision to buy drones seems taken, nothing has yet been decided regarding the helicopters. An A400M transport aircraft should also be acquired in partnership with other NATO members (France, Germany,…

keywords : krav maga, self defense, close combat, insecurity, street fight, law enforcement. What is Krav Maga ? What for ? Am I concerned ? We will see that facing a growing insecurity feeling in the population, this self defense martial art deserves attention. A growing insecurity for people. Saying that insecurity feeling in the population has never been so high for a long time is a no brainer. Between terrorism, aggressions and acts of incivility, a lot of people would like to know self defense techniques even if…

keywords: military service, cold war, deterrence, russia, sweden. While the question of the return of military service may seem absurd as it is admitted that the European countries no longer practice conscription, a recent news issued yesterday caused the perplexity of military experts. Western countries are facing an unprecedented news, the return of conscription in a European country in peace. Sweden announced yesterday 02 March 2017, the return of military service from the summer of 2017. The news impact is equaled only by the precipitation of its implementation. The country…

keywords: pentagon, president trump, nato, military ambition, europe of defense. President Trump announces today a significant increase of nearly 10% in the budget of the national defense (Pentagon) which leaves the whole world puzzled. While he seemed to want to reduce military spending (see the pressure he put on US military equipment manufacturers with a series of tweets in order to lower the prices) he now takes the opposite side. An increase of such importance is not surprising in China for example, but it is well in the United…

keywords : spaceresources.lu, luximpulse, satellites, spacex, blue origin, ses astra. While the traditional space actors remain stable (the European Space Agency (ESA) with its flagship Ariane program), or are losing ground (NASA with shutdown of the shuttle program), the space industry is facing the arrival of new stakeholders that are willing to disrupt the launch satellites market (Elon Musk’s SpaceX, Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin) or to a lesser extent are willing to democratize the space tri (Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic). By gradually getting moe and more public budgets from the…

keywords : intelligence services, betray, secrecy, money, ideology, ego. Intelligence Services (IS) are continuously looking for the good information. In order to find this good information, they have many options. Nowadays the Internet takes an important part, as the electronic exchanges and social networks take a big part of our lives. But it is not the only option to do so. Historically they insist on human intelligence. And of course it is still the case. The idea is to find out the person who can access the desired information, and…

keywords : donald trump, china, lockheed martin, #unpresident, #MakeAmericaGreatAgain. President-elect Donald Trump was criticized during his presidential campaign because of so called tweeting too much and being too impulsive on social networks, mainly Twitter. At some point even his aide took control of his twitter account in order to prevent him to make a mistake that could cost him the White House. But now, the Twitter account is back to his owner. With more or less 5 tweets a day, President-elect Trump shows to American people and to the world…